Teel Time: Bracket advice -- think Bucknell, Miami -- just in a nick of time

David Teel

Nothing like pushing deadline. After Monday and Tuesday’s First Four, the NCAA basketball tournament begins paring down the traditional 64-team bracket in little more than an hour.

So FWIW -- I have not won an NCAA tournament pool since 1995 – here are the picks.

Some – VCU to the Sweet 16, Miami to reach Atlanta – are based on first-hand observations. Others – Pittsburgh and Colorado to play above their seeds – are rooted in Ken Pomeroy’s statistics and ratings.

And one – Bucknell to survive the weekend – is about family. My two godchildren are former Bison lacrosse players, and a fading orange Bucknell decal adorns the rear window of my Porsche.

Not to mention that 6-foot-11 Bison center Mike Muscala can play, as America will learn this afternoon.

ROUND OF 64

Lower seeds to advance: Minnesota over UCLA, Colorado over Illinois, Bucknell over Butler, Davidson over Marquette.